| Antonella Ruggiero | |
|---|---|
Antonella Ruggiero - Summer tour 2010 |
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Antonella Ruggiero |
| Also known as | Matia |
| Born | 15 November 1952 Genova, Liguria, Italy |
| Genres | pop |
| Instruments | Vocals |
| Years active | 1974 - present |
| Labels | Liberamusic (her independent label) Edel Music (distribution) |
| Website | antonellaruggiero.com |
Antonella Ruggiero (Genoa November 15, 1952) is an Italian singer.
Antonella Ruggiero was born in Genoa, Liguria and made her first recording, Io Matia ("I Matia" in English), in 1974. Matia is the stage name under which Antonella Ruggiero officially began her solo career with the first and rare 45 rpm vinyl record, however had already collaborated (unofficially) with the Jet in their LP vinyl record Faith, Hope and Charity lending her leading voice in the choruses. It was from the union of some members of both the Jet and Matia that in 1975 the Matia Bazar were born.
She is classified as a light soprano and has extraordinary vocal range; capable of singing in 4 octaves.
In 1975 with Piero Cassano (voice and keyboards), Aldo Stellita (bass), Giancarlo Golzi (drums), Carlo Marrale (voice and guitars) she gave birth to the historical group Matia Bazar. Pop hits from the band included: “Ma perché”, “Solo tu”, “Per un’ora d’amore”, “Stasera che sera”, “Cavallo bianco”, “Il video sono io”, “Mister Mandarino”, “Ti Sento” and “Vacanze romane”.
Ti Sento was their major hit. It was number one in Belgium and Italy.
Her partnership with the group lasted until 1989. Then, seven years after, in 1996 she made her solo debut with the album Libera, the result of a cathartic journey carried out in new cultural and musical atmospheres.
In the 1998 edition of the Sanremo Festival placed second with “Amore lontanissimo”, which also earned the critics' award for best arrangement. In 1999 she stood up at the Ariston Theater stage with “Non ti dimentico (Se non ci fossero le nuvole)” written together with her husband Roberto Colombo, and was classified in second place again. This song was dedicated to Aldo Stellita, former stage companion (was founder member/author/bass player of the Matia Bazar) and for many years her friend, who died prematurely in 1998. Immediately after the festival, Ruggiero released her third CD as soloist, Sospesa. This album included the participations of Ennio Morricone, who companied "And Will You Love Me", and Giovanni Lindo Ferretti, who co-wrote "Di perle e inverni" with Ruggiero and Roberto Colombo.
In 2003 she was back in the Sanremo contest with “Di un amore” (where she finished in ninth place).
On June 4, 2004 she performed a concert in the Brooklyn Museum of New York as a worldwide preview of her CD/DVD entitled Sacrarmonia Live (Il viaggio) with sacred songs of Christian inspiration from several parts of the world. On November 25, 2004 she performed at The Sugar Club in Dublin, accompanied by Mark Harris (piano), Carlo Cantini (strings) and Ivan Ciccarelli (percussions).
In 2005 she re-entered the Sanremo contest with “Echi d’infinito”, she was awarded first prize in the “Women” category, and third in overall classification. In 2005, together with both the Chorus Sant'Ilario di Rovereto and the Chorus of Valle Dei Laghi di Padergnone she became the character of the “Echi d’infinito” project, a recovery of Alpine pop songs and also of her own songs accompanied only by human voice.
She is frequently touring with different kinds of concerts: "Sacrarmonia", a concert dedicated to sacred music of the world; "Tribute to Amalia Rodrigues", a concert committed to the Portuguese fado and its more famous performer, "Four steps for Broadway", a recital devoted to the most popular Broadway musicals (“Tonight”, “Over The Rainbow”, “Summertime”); and the Stralunato Recital Concert where she performs her most meaningful and famous songs.
In 2007 she participated once again in Sanremo with the song "Canzone fra le guerre" (written in collaboration with Cristian Carrara), which was ranked in tenth place in the end. During Sanremo’s third evening (dedicated to hosts), she performed unaccompanied singing in contest with both the Chorus of Valle Dei Laghi and the Chorus of S. Ilario.
While maintaining the pop music that made her famous even abroad, Antonella Ruggiero also lends her voice to music of different origins and culture. She has performed many times in English-language countries, including a version of “Ti sento” known in the United Kingdom as “I Feel You”.
In October 2009, the German dance act Scooter released a cover version of "Ti Sento" featuring the vocals of Ruggiero. She also appeared in the accompanying music video, playing an opera singer. The single peaked at number ten on the German Singles Chart in October 2009, becoming Ruggiero's first German top ten hit in her career. The Matia Bazar original version peaked at number eleven in August 1986.
In 2010 she made two new album: "Contemporanea tango" (live CD), is a "trip" in the history of Tango and "I regali di natale" (double CD) is an album dedicated to the Christmas music from the Middle Ages to 40's years, the disc contains musical atmospheres from the classic music to the jazz music, with slight hints of pop and electronic music.